WheelerCentreWhat do fantasy fans, political tragics and HBO nerds all have in common? Think swords, scheming, dragons, nudity … and the most controversial wedding in television history. It could only be Game of Thrones.
In this video, we meet bestselling author and Game of Thrones creator George R.R. Martin, as well as Michelle Fairley – who plays Catelyn Stark (née Tully) in the HBO series. Radio presenter and comedian Dan Debuf is our host.
This blockbuster event gives Game of Thrones fans a rare insight into George R.R. Martin’s incredible imagination and unveil his future aspirations for the series, as well as the inner workings of the series’ epic journey from page to screen.
Presented by the Wheeler Centre and Supanova Pop Culture Expo.
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Support the Wheeler Centre In an uncertain time for everybody, we're working hard to bring you conversations and ideas through podcasts, live-streams and publishing – all freely accessible. If you’re in a position to support our efforts to bring you books, writing and ideas from a safe distance, you can make a contribution here: wheelercentre.com/support-us/donate. Thank you for your generosity.
Game of Thrones with George R.R. Martin and Michelle FairleyWheelerCentre2015-01-27 | What do fantasy fans, political tragics and HBO nerds all have in common? Think swords, scheming, dragons, nudity … and the most controversial wedding in television history. It could only be Game of Thrones.
In this video, we meet bestselling author and Game of Thrones creator George R.R. Martin, as well as Michelle Fairley – who plays Catelyn Stark (née Tully) in the HBO series. Radio presenter and comedian Dan Debuf is our host.
This blockbuster event gives Game of Thrones fans a rare insight into George R.R. Martin’s incredible imagination and unveil his future aspirations for the series, as well as the inner workings of the series’ epic journey from page to screen.
Presented by the Wheeler Centre and Supanova Pop Culture Expo.
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Support the Wheeler Centre In an uncertain time for everybody, we're working hard to bring you conversations and ideas through podcasts, live-streams and publishing – all freely accessible. If you’re in a position to support our efforts to bring you books, writing and ideas from a safe distance, you can make a contribution here: wheelercentre.com/support-us/donate. Thank you for your generosity.Paul Auster: Burning BoyWheelerCentre2024-05-14 | Paul Auster was a true giant of American literature. Acclaimed for his best-selling works of fiction, nonfiction and poetry, including The New York Trilogy, Invisible, and The Brooklyn Follies, Auster wrote complex and daring tales of humans experiencing, anticipating or searching for something lost, something they are struggling to comprehend.
In his 2021 book, Burning Boy, he turned his eye to the 19th-century bad boy of American literature, Stephen Crane. Crane is known for popularising American naturalism, a literary movement that has influenced generations of writers (including Auster himself). But he was as daring off the page as he was on it.
Throughout his short life, Crane cavorted from one high-stakes situation to the next: from engaging in political journalism that disrupted the course of the 1892 presidential campaign, to entering a common-law marriage with the proprietress of Jacksonville’s most elegant bawdyhouse, to surviving a shipwreck that nearly drowned him, and eventually relocating to England, where Joseph Conrad became his closest friend and Henry James wept over his tragic, early death.
In November 2021, Auster joined host Corrie Perkin for a conversation about Burning Boy and the nature of creative legacy. What are the questions one master chooses to ask of another? And what is there to learn from a life lived so bright it burned?Love Your Body with The BodzillaWheelerCentre2024-05-13 | Three years ago, the Bodzilla took Australia by storm as the first fat model to be featured in a bikini on an Australian billboard.
In this Lunch Order, the renowned activist and model talks body love activism and the importance of representation in the media. April Hélène-Horton (aka The Bodzilla) unpacks the fat positivity and body acceptance movements. Because every body is a bikini body.
This event will be available to watch on this page from 12.30pm on Wednesday 15 May 2024.
Lunch Orders is generously supported by George and Rosa Morstyn.
Presented in partnership with the Victorian Association for the Teaching of English.Origin of You: Mindy Meng Wang 王萌 and Sui ZhenWheelerCentre2024-05-09 | Beloved Chinese-Australian composers Mindy Meng Wang 王萌 and Becky Sui Zhen explore their new musical partnership Origin of You, complete with a special live performance.
Origin of You by Mindy Meng Wang 王萌 and Becky Sui Zhen is a highly personal musical exploration of lived experiences of migration, motherhood, grief and reconnecting with identity.
The album uses three central motifs: 空 (Kōng), or Emptiness; 疼 (Téng), or Pain; 气 (Chi), sometimes known as ‘Energy’ to explore these stories.
Live at The Wheeler Centre, Wang and Zhen came together with host Eugenia Lim to talk about their craft, the origins of their collaboration and the importance of storytelling, complete with a mesmerising live performance of their new work.Bodies Anonymous with Dr Melissa KangWheelerCentre2024-05-01 | Legendary Dolly Doctor Melissa Kang unpacks the shame and secrecy around bodies in this edition of Lunch Orders.
For this Lunch Order, we’re joined by none other than legendary Dolly Doctor, Dr Melissa Kang, to talk about the -hideously embarrassing- totally normal things we all want to know about our bodies but can feel too ashamed to ask.
This event will be available to watch on this page from 12.30pm on Wednesday 1 May 2024.
Lunch Orders is generously supported by George and Rosa Morstyn.
Presented in partnership with the Victorian Association for the Teaching of English.Chanel Contos: Consent Laid BareWheelerCentre2024-04-25 | Chanel Contos has generated global conversations about rape culture, consent and sex education. She has led a powerful movement to include consent education in the national curriculum, and was recently appointed by Julia Gillard to chair the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership’s Youth Advisory Committee.
Her debut book, Consent Laid Bare: Sex, Entitlement & the Distortion of Desire, is a battle cry from a generation no longer prepared to stay silent. In it, Contos explores the political, legislative and cultural changes required to combat Australia’s culture of misogyny and normalisation of sexual violence, and outlines steps to achieve true gender equality. Consent Laid Bare advocates for intimacy, consent and enjoyment to be centred in all sexual relationships.
At this exclusive Melbourne event hosted by Madison Griffiths at The Wheeler Centre in March 2024, Contos discussed the vital role of consent amidst a culture influenced by porn, the patriarchy and male entitlement.
This event was presented in partnership with the Victorian Women’s Trust.
Content note: This event includes references to sexual abuse and assault. If you need support relating to these topics, you can learn more and seek advice via the below resources.
Lifeline: 13 11 14 Kids Helpline: 1800 551 800 Suicide Call Back Service: 1300 659 467 Beyond Blue: 1300 22 46 36 Headspace: 1800 650 890 Sexual Assault Crisis Line: 1800 806 292Jane Smiley in ConversationWheelerCentre2024-04-17 | At this exclusive in-conversation event with host David Francis, Smiley looks back on her incredible life and career and gives audience members an exciting preview of her upcoming novel, Lucky: a novel about music, womanhood and finding yourself.In Conversation with Fern Brady: Strong Female CharacterWheelerCentre2024-04-11 | Fern Brady, one of the UK’s most exciting stand-ups, visited The Wheeler Centre to discuss her bestselling book Strong Female Character as part of the 2024 Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
Hosted by Australian stand-up comedian and writer Laura Davis, Brady discussed her writing process, Catholic upbringing and late diagnosis of autism.
Presented in partnership with the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.Patrick deWitt: The LibrarianistWheelerCentre2024-03-27 | Known for literary masterpieces like The Sisters Brothers and French Exit, Canadian writer Patrick deWitt has been delighting readers for more than a decade.
In his latest work, The Librarianist, deWitt’s distinctive verve and humour come to the fore. His exploration of the life of retired Oregon-based librarian Bob Comet masterfully blends melancholy and comedy.
With host Marieke Hardy, deWitt delves into his expansive career and the compassion for the outcast that animates his latest novel, celebrating the extraordinary in so-called ordinary life.Dassi Erlich: In Bad FaithWheelerCentre2024-03-21 | In February 2024, Dassi Erlich shared a powerful story of survival at her first public appearance since the release of her memoir, In Bad Faith.
Dassi Erlich and her sisters, Elly Sapper and Nicole Meyer, grew up in an ultra-Orthodox Jewish community in the inner suburbs of Melbourne. As young women, the three sisters accused their high school principal, Malka Leifer, of sexual abuse spanning their teenage years. In 2023, after 15 years of tireless campaigning, attempts by Leifer to escape justice by fleeing to Israel, and extradition orders, a Melbourne jury found Leifer guilty.
At this exclusive Melbourne event, Dassi Erlich discussed her memoir and its honest reckoning with secrecy and power. With host and co-writer, Ellen Whinnett, Dassi shared her experience at the centre of the high-profile trial, and the cost and urgency of seeking justice for herself and for other sexual abuse survivors.
Sarah Krasnostein was initially scheduled to host this conversation but was unable to appear. Please note that this conversation contains reference to sexual abuse and assault.
If you need assistance with any of these issues, you can learn more and seek advice via the below resources. Lifeline: 13 11 14 Kids Helpline: 1800 551 800 Suicide Call Back Service: 1300 659 467 Beyond Blue: 1300 22 46 36 Headspace: 1800 650 890 Sexual Assault Crisis Line: 1800 806 292Future TechWheelerCentre2024-03-20 | In a 2022 Melbourne Fringe performance, artist Vidya Rajan created a Twitter bot to ask questions about sentience, identity and the Artificial Intelligence revolution.
Vidya’s Lunch Order will consider the future of tech, and what it means to be a human in a post-human world.
Click here to submit your questions for Vidya or use this link after the event to send us your thoughts. https://app.sli.do/event/fZHy4tagR52FQCibNMfHRN
Lunch Orders is generously supported by George and Rosa Morstyn.Richard Ford in ConversationWheelerCentre2024-03-13 | Richard Ford is a true literary luminary. The author of eight novels and four short story collections, Ford’s illustrious career spans nearly five decades and numerous accolades, including the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for Independence Day.
At this special Melbourne event hosted by journalist Jonathan Green, Ford discusses his exceptional career and examines his most famous protagonist: the enigmatic Frank Bascombe, who has been hailed as one of the most unforgettable characters in American literature.Mind Over Machine: AI, Creativity, Humanities, and the ArtsWheelerCentre2024-03-08 | Join us for an engaging and thought-provoking panel discussion on the current and future impacts of artificial intelligence on the arts and humanities. Our expert panel explores the practical and ethical ramifications of AI technology on academia, publishing, and the creation of art, including its impact on intellectual property.
Featuring Pantera Press publisher and novelist John M Green; author, critic, and poet Richard King; lawyer and chair of Digital Rights Watch Lizzie O’Shea; supercomputing and AI expert Kiowa Scott-Hurley; chief scientist at the UNSW AI Institute Toby Walsh; and founder and director of the Jacky Winter Group Jeremy Wortsman. Each speaker shares a provocation informed by their expertise and experience, before opening up to a panel discussion hosted by ABC Big Ideas host Natasha Mitchell.Future PlanetWheelerCentre2024-03-06 | Where will we go if the planet can no longer sustain us? How can we avoid making the same mistakes in space that we’ve made on earth? Is there a future off this planet?
This event will be livestreamed on this page from 12.30pm on Wednesday 6 March 2024.
Click here to submit your questions for Alice, or use this link after the event to send us your thoughts https://app.sli.do/event/kQCjc2MoZ4ZmgHtbww7dxR.Pia Miranda: Finding My Bella VitaWheelerCentre2024-02-29 | This event features beloved Australian actor Pia Miranda discussing the full story of her beautiful life – from childhood dreams to reigning supreme as the ultimate Australian survivor.
There is hardly a more familiar face, or reminder of quintessential Australian adolescence, than that of Australian actor Pia Miranda. Her role as Josie in the cult classic film Looking for Alibrandi imprinted her in our hearts and minds in the 90s, but her story extends far beyond that iconic character.
In her 2023 memoir, Finding My Bella Vita, Miranda recalled the moments and people who have shaped her life. Sharing childhood tales from her Nonna, recounting her early pursuit of a ballet career, her unexpected entry into the world of acting, and her return to screens on Australian Survivor, Miranda explored the rollercoaster ride of fame, the challenges of real life, and the push and pull between her Italian heritage and Australian upbringing.
Pia Miranda was joined by host Jaclyn Crupi for a special Spring Fling event at the Wheeler Centre in October 2023.Rebecca Makkai Has Some QuestionsWheelerCentre2024-02-27 | Live in Melbourne in October 2023, Rebecca Makkai delved into her latest novel, I Have Some Questions for You, for the Wheeler Centre’s Spring Fling.
The author of The Great Believers and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, Rebecca Makkai is back with an explosive new work. Described by the New York Times as ‘spellbinding’, I Have Some Questions for You is part campus novel, part true-crime podcast investigation, all told through the lens of the #MeToo era.
Hosted by journalist Rachael Brown, the event also opened with an electric monologue from Suzie Miller, creator of the Olivier Award-winning play – and now novel – Prima Facie.
This event was presented in partnership with RMIT Culture.Imagining the FutureWheelerCentre2024-02-27 | For our debut Lunch Order, we’re bringing you the incredible creative mind of Stephen Mushin to speak about the necessity of imagination to design a sustainable future.
Stephen Mushin's debut book Ultrawild is part-graphic novel, part-blueprint that brings together plausible science, sustainable ethics and hope – all in one visual spectacle. Stephen will speak about the years he’s spent bringing this project to life, and how we might use science and storytelling to imagine a new reality.
If you would like to join the conversation, you can visit https://app.sli.do/event/hmFknfYAXQdvKV2kkcb1rf to submit your questions for Stephen. You can also use this link to send us your thoughts after the event.Best of Australian Poems 2023WheelerCentre2024-02-22 | Join the Wheeler Centre and Australian Poetry for an evening of poetry and performance at the launch of the 2023 Best of Australian Poems anthology.
Contributors Alex Creece, Kathryn Gledhill-Tucker, Jeanine Leane, Kate Lilley, Leah Muddle, Autumn Royal and Thabani Tshuma will share readings and performances from the much-anticipated collection and explore the nature of Australia’s poetry landscape over the year that was. Hosted by Australian Poetry’s Managing Editor Adalya Nash Hussein.Creative Witnessing: Andrew Quilty and Ben QuiltyWheelerCentre2024-02-22 | As part of the Wheeler Centre's 2023 Spring Fling program, Walkley Award-winning photojournalist Andrew Quilty was joined by his cousin, Archibald Prize-winning artist Ben Quilty, to discuss his new book This is Afghanistan.
Appearing together in conversation for the first time, the cousins discussed Andrew’s new book, which offers a unique visual record of this vibrant, complex and resilient country’s last nine years of conflict and turmoil. Ben’s acclaimed portrait series, After Afghanistan, was created during his time as Australia’s Official War Artist in Afghanistan, and presents a deeply impressionist artistic record of the experiences of Australian forces embedded in that country.
Together, they reflected on the immense responsibility of bearing witness through the camera lens and on the canvas, the power of photography and art to shed light on conflict and human rights, and the moral imperative not to look away.
Diana Sayed, CEO of the Australian Muslim Women’s Centre for Human Rights, opened the event, followed by a keynote address from Shuja Jamal. A researcher, advocate and the former director-general for international relations on Kabul’s National Security Council, Jamal spoke to the current political and social reality in Afghanistan following the withdrawal of Western forces. A portion of proceeds from this event was donated to the Australian Muslim Women's Centre for Human Rights.Future FoodWheelerCentre2024-02-21 | As we reflect on our planet’s finite resources, how can we reimagine our relationship with food to ensure there’s enough for everyone?
As the Creative Director of PermaQueer, an educational outfit that supports queer, POC and other vulnerable communities through permaculture education, Guy Ritani is deeply invested in forging reciprocal relationships within a greater ecosystem.
Guy's Lunch Orders soapbox will consider the role of community and practices such as permaculture in the future of food.
If you would like to join the conversation, you can click here to submit your questions for Guy. You can also use this link to send us your thoughts after the event.Launch of the Australian Children’s Laureate 2024 - 2025WheelerCentre2024-02-20 | Celebrate the new Australian Children’s Laureate, the ambassador for Australian children's literature nationally and on the world stage.
Join the Australian Children Laureate’s Foundation for a livestreamed morning of performances, readings and creative activities to celebrate the program launch of the newly appointed Australian Children's Laureate for 2024 and 2025.
The Australian Children's Laureate embraces the transformational power of reading, creativity and story in the lives of young Australians. A national and international ambassador for Australian children’s literature, the Laureate is appointed on a biennial basis, and selected from our country’s leading authors and/or illustrators. Gabrielle Wang, the outgoing Laureate, called her appointment her ‘greatest honour’.Fanchants and Fingerhearts: Ari Tampubolon performs Savage by AespaWheelerCentre2024-02-15 | Celebrate the world of K-pop and its global community of passionate and talented supporters with fans sharing readings, reflections, art and dance inspired by this global sensation.
In this video, performance artist Ari Tampubolon talks about falling in and out of love with K-pop, reflects on the cultural soft power of the Hallyu wave and performs to ‘Savage’ by Aespa.Brittany Spanos: Swiftmania (Taylor’s Version)WheelerCentre2024-02-14 | Journalist Brittany Spanos and host Brodie Lancaster discuss the mythology and influence of Taylor Swift. They speak about Swift’s meteoric ascent to become one of the most celebrated and prolific musical artists of all time, and her ongoing impact on fandom, popular culture and the music industry.
Brittany Spanos’s visit to Melbourne was part of the University of Melbourne’s Swiftposium conference. This was her only public event.Fanchants and Fingerhearts: Sophia Cai on BTS as muse and inspirationWheelerCentre2024-02-14 | Celebrate the world of K-pop and its global community of passionate and talented supporters with fans sharing readings, reflections, art and dance inspired by this global sensation.
In this video, curator and arts writer Sophia Cai shares the ways BTS act as muse and inspiration for her professional and creative work.Fanchants and Fingerhearts: Erin Kim on BTS and fanartWheelerCentre2024-02-13 | Celebrate the world of K-pop and its global community of passionate and talented supporters with fans sharing readings, reflections, art and dance inspired by this global sensation.
In this video, animator Erin Kim presents two commissioned illustrations of BTS member J-Hope and shares a reflection about art, her Korean-Australian identity and how J-Hope's passion inspires her own creativity.Fanchants and Fingerhearts: Anita Solak’s poem ‘Every day is Taemin’s DayWheelerCentre2024-02-12 | Celebrate the world of K-pop and its global community of passionate and talented supporters with fans sharing readings, reflections, art and dance inspired by this global sensation.
In this video, writer Anita Solak reads her poem titled ‘Every day is Taemin’s Day’. The poem is about Taemin’s artistry, K-Pop stan Twitter and how SHINee’s back.Colson Whitehead: Harlem Shuffle HighlightsWheelerCentre2024-02-08 | Two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning author Colson Whitehead arrives in Melbourne to take readers on a journey through the bygone eras that inspired his new Harlem Trilogy.
One of only four writers to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction twice, Colson Whitehead is the multi-award-winning and bestselling author of works including The Nickel Boys and The Underground Railroad, which was also adapted for the small screen, produced and directed by Academy Award-winning director Barry Jenkins.
Whitehead begun his new Harlem Trilogy with Harlem Shuffle, a genre-hopping family saga that acts as a crime novel, a morality play, a social novel about race and power, and a love letter to Harlem. Its sequel, Crook Manifesto, will be published in July 2023.
For the Wheeler Centre’s World of Words, hear from Whitehead live in conversation with journalist and filmmaker Santilla Chingaipe as he shares his creative process bringing bygone eras to life for the modern reader, discusses the challenges and rewards of writing a sequel for the first time, and immerses Melbourne audiences in the world of Harlem Shuffle.
Presented in partnership with RMIT Culture.
This event is supported by the Melbourne City Revitalisation Fund, a Victorian Government and City of Melbourne partnership.2024 Victorian Premiers Literary Awards Live StreamWheelerCentre2024-02-01 | The Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards were inaugurated by the Victorian Government in 1985 to honour literary achievement by Australian writers. The awards are administered by the Wheeler Centre on behalf of the Premier of Victoria.
The winners of the main suite of awards – the prizes for Fiction, Non-Fiction, Drama, Poetry, Award for Indigenous Writing, Children’s Literature and Writing for Young Adults – each receive $25,000.
The winner of the Award for an Unpublished Manuscript receives $15,000 in prize money and, introduced in 2022, a two-week residency at the McCraith House in Dromana as part of a partnership between The Wheeler Centre and RMIT Culture.
The winners of the six main suite categories go on to contest the overall Victorian Prize for Literature, worth an additional $100,000. This is the single most valuable literary award in the country.
The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony hosted by Sami Shah on Thursday 1 February 2024, and you can tune in to the live-stream of the awards right here on our website.Take It From Me: World of WorriesWheelerCentre2024-02-01 | Struggling to spot Hinge profile red flags? Want a romantic recipe for a third date? Need help spicing up your situationship? Don't worry, Take It From Me’s panel of hilarious non-experts are here to help ... or at least try to.
For World of Words, The Wheeler Centre’s adored love and dating advice series returned with an all-star international line-up including former Dear Prudence writer Daniel M. Lavery and Masterchef UK judge William Sitwell, along with sexologist and founder of Mia Muse Vanessa Muradian and Take It From Me’s host, writer, DJ, and ABC broadcaster Jess McGuire.
Together, the panel dish out advice in response to anonymously submitted romantic quandaries and quagmires.Lonnie Holley: Thumbs Up for Mother UniverseWheelerCentre2024-01-24 | Transcend the limits of creativity with American multidisciplinary artist Lonnie Holley.
Lonnie Holley is a visionary. Renowned for his unconventional approach to art and music, his extraordinary life of hardship and survival has fueled a relentless drive and expression that knows no bounds.Working across multiple artforms, his work is held in the collections of The Met, The Smithsonian, the Art Gallery of NSW and in the United Nations.
His most recent album Oh Me Oh My, released to immense critical acclaim, features collaborations with Michael Stipe, Sharon Van Etten, Bon Iver and many more. He has referred to his art and music as a ‘salve for his memories.
’For Spring Fling, join Holley and host Santilla Chingaipe at the Wheeler Centre for an evening of conversation and live performance. Prepare to be transformed by this true artistic force, who has devoted his life to furious curiosity and the practice of improvisational creativity.Trent Dalton: Lola in the MirrorWheelerCentre2024-01-18 | Before he found runaway success with his debut novel, Boy Swallows Universe, and follow-up All Our Shimmering Skies, Trent Dalton spent decades as a journalist investigating the real-life social inequities that underpin his third novel, Lola in the Mirror: poverty, violence, homelessness – and the power of hope.
The result is a moving, darkly funny story about life and death that is by turns heart-breaking and eye-opening. Trent spoke with musician and writer Clare Bowditch at Melbourne Town Hall for the Wheeler Centre’s Spring Fling in October 2023.
This event was presented in partnership with Readings.Bryan Brown in ConversationWheelerCentre2024-01-04 | Bryan Brown has been gracing Australian screens for decades. His work spans television, film and two books, the latest of which is The Drowning.
Set in a sleepy northern New South Wales town, Brown’s first novel is full of his characteristic laconic storytelling. Humorous, tough, cinematic and suspenseful, The Drowning joins the rural crime ranks of Jane Harper and Chris Hammer.
Bryan Brown joined Australian writer J.P. Pomare at The Wheeler Centre for an exclusive live Melbourne event in November 2023.Access to Justice: Law, Policing and PowerWheelerCentre2023-12-28 | How do we hold structures of power accountable? And what happens when justice fails the very people it’s supposed to help?
Three significant voices come together to discuss the social, political and legal barriers to justice in Australia, and to examine how structures of power can better serve the individuals and communities who depend on them.
Hear from Walkley Award-winning journalist and author Dan Box (The Man Who Wasn’t There: A true story about lies, murder and the Territory), Gunai/Kurnai woman and award-winning author Veronica Gorrie (Black and Blue: A memoir of racism and resilience), and lawyer and human rights campaigner Isabelle Reinecke (Courting Power: Law, Democracy and the Public Interest in Australia).
Together, they draw on their experiences across law, media, policing and activism to reveal challenging and necessary truths about accessing justice in this country, and consider what changes are needed to ensure true justice for all. Hosted by Monique Hurley, Managing Lawyer at the Human Rights Law Centre.
Sponsored by the Victorian Legal Services Board + Commissioner in support of improving access to justice for Victorians. Supported by the Human Rights Law Centre. The event is supported by the Human Rights Law Centre.Day of the Imprisoned Writer: Behrouz Boochani and Kylie Moore-GilbertWheelerCentre2023-12-21 | Together with PEN Melbourne, join Behrouz Boochani, Kylie Moore-Gilbert and host Karen Percy for a conversation about the importance of freedom of speech and press, and the role writers play in challenging oppressive regimes.
Kurdish-Iranian journalist Behrouz Boochani was imprisoned on Manus Island for over six years, and during that time he became acutely aware that oppression takes root when people look away. He was determined to use his sharpest weapon – his words – to survive, and to expose Australia’s inhumane treatment of asylum seekers.
Now, in 2023, not only is Boochani free, he’s also a multi-award-winning author, documentary maker, humanitarian and scholar. His words, and those of other writers and activists, have changed lives, his own included. And they’ve helped keep us accountable.
A scholar of Middle Eastern and Islamic studies, Kylie Moore-Gilbert also spent years unjustly imprisoned in unimaginable conditions. Invited on a study tour of Iran in 2018, Moore-Gilbert was falsely accused of espionage and imprisoned for more than 800 days, including seven months in solitary confinement – before her ultimate release through an Australian-brokered prisoner exchange.
Boochani and Moore-Gilbert came together for this special event, presented by PEN Melbourne and the Wheeler Centre to mark the Day of the Imprisoned Writer. With host Karen Percy, these remarkable survivors shared their powerful stories, and reflected on the role of writing to shine a light in the darkest places.
Presented in partnership with PEN Melbourne.The Wheeler Centre - your home for thought provoking conversationWheelerCentre2023-12-20 | The Wheeler Centre is Melbourne’s home for smart, passionate and entertaining public talks. The Wheeler Centre was established in recognition of Melbourne’s status as a UNESCO City of Literature. It is a vibrant gathering place that draws together leading and surprising voices to reflect national conversations.
Find out more at my.wheelercentre.com/account/create/briefBridging Worlds Through Stories: Diversity in StorytellingWheelerCentre2023-12-08 | This event is being run in partnership between The Wheeler Centre and the ACLF, with funding support from The Deafness Foundation.Leigh Sales: Beyond the HeadlinesWheelerCentre2023-12-07 | In October 2023, one of Australia’s most accomplished and admired journalists, Leigh Sales, appeared live in Melbourne as part of the Wheeler Centre’s 2023 Spring Fling program.
Leigh Sales is one of Australia’s most beloved journalists. A veteran anchor of the ABC’s flagship current affairs program 7.30, the new presenter of Australian Story, co-host of hugely popular podcast Chat 10 Looks 3 with Annabel Crabb, and a bestselling author, Sales has been recognised with three Walkley Awards over the course of a career that has seen her interview countless political leaders, innovators and artists.
In her new book, Storytellers: Questions, Answers and the Craft of Journalism, Sales turns her talents on her remarkable peers – including Waleed Aly, Richard Fidler, Niki Savva and Stan Grant – revealing candid insights into the craft of journalism and the power of storytelling.
At this exclusive Spring Fling address and in-conversation with ABC producer Elias Clure, Sales shared insights from her career in the media and offered the audience a peek behind the curtain of this vital but often misunderstood profession.Teen Gala 2023WheelerCentre2023-12-02 | Join talented young writers, actors, comedians and poets at this year’s Wheeler Centre Teen Gala. Hear from a host of vibrant teen voices, who will share powerful stories, speeches, and performances.
Don’t miss this truly stellar line-up, offering an inspiring glimpse of creative voices to watch. The future is in great hands.State of the (Writing) Nation: André DaoWheelerCentre2023-11-21 | The State of the (Writing) Nation is Writers Victoria’s annual address from a prominent Australian writer. It’s a chance to reflect on what’s happening and where we’re heading in Australian literature and publishing.
Join us either in person or via the livestream to hear the 2023 address from writer, editor and artist André Dao. Dao’s debut novel, Anam, won the 2021 Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for an Unpublished Manuscript. In his address, Dao will consider the relationship between race, writing and the nation.
Dao is the co-founder of Behind the Wire, the award-winning oral history project documenting the stories of the adults and children who have been detained by the Australian government after seeking asylum in Australia. His work for Behind the Wire includes a Quill award-winning article for The Saturday Paper, and the Walkley Award-winning podcast, The Messenger. He co-edited Behind the Wire’s collection of literary oral histories They Cannot Take the Sky.
Hosted by Writers Victoria patron Andy Jackson, the evening will also feature an opening reading by writer and editor Hasib Hourani.
Presented in partnership with Writers Victoria. All proceeds from this event will support the Writers Victoria Fund, which supports writers who experience financial barriers to access professional development and networking opportunities.Dennis Glover: ThawWheelerCentre2023-11-19 | For Melbourne City Reads, Dennis Glover, author of The Last Man in Europe and Factory 19, and one of Australia’s leading speechwriters and political commentators, sat down with Ramona Koval to share the inspiration, research and thought-provoking ideas behind his new novel Thaw.
Taking as its inspiration the ill-fated 1912 Antarctic expedition undertaken by British explorer Robert Falcon Scott, and coupling it with a contemporary tale about climate change, Thaw examines the unfathomable power of the natural world, and the enduring resilience of the human spirit in the face of adversity.The E.W. Cole Lecture: Who Gets to Write History?WheelerCentre2023-11-16 | Napoleon Bonaparte is credited with saying that ‘history is a set of lies agreed upon.’ But whose lies are they? And who agreed upon them?
For the second annual E.W. Cole Lecture, presented as part of the Wheeler Centre’s Spring Fling, historian and author Santilla Chingaipe asks, ‘who gets to write history?’
Drawing on her work exploring settler colonialism, slavery, and post-colonial migration in Australia, Chingaipe scrutinises the process of writing history, questioning what is considered historical truth and whose histories may be erased as a result.
Following a thought-provoking address, Chingaipe is joined by Zoe Laidlaw, Professor of History in the School of Historical and Philosophical Studies at University of Melbourne. Together they interrogate the process of recording the past and ask what needs to change to stop history from repeating itself.
The annual E. W. Cole Lecture invites Australia's brightest thinkers to deliver talks that spark optimistic, progressive and future-thinking ideas for our society and our world, and celebrate the fruitful intersection of intellect and play.
Supported by The E. W. Cole Foundation.A House of One’s Own: Creativity in ResidenceWheelerCentre2023-11-13 | Since 2013, RMIT’s McCraith House Creative Residency Program has offered writers and creatives dedicated space and time to immerse themselves in their practice, located in the beautiful surrounds of the Mornington Peninsula. To celebrate the Program’s 10th anniversary, join some of the house’s past residents – including Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for an Unpublished Manuscript winners André Dao and Keshe Chow, author of The Hummingbird Effect Kate Mildenhall, and host Francesca Rendle-Short – as they share their work and discuss the varying impacts of prizes, residencies, and support opportunities for writers. Presented in partnership with RMIT Culture.Sentimental Garbage: Live in MelbourneWheelerCentre2023-11-09 | ‘I started Sentimental Garbage in defence of romance; in defence of sincerity, and sentimentality, and joy, and kissing, and women with improbable apartments and complicated sex lives, and now I don’t feel in defence of any of those at all… I just love this stuff.’
From Mariah Carey, Sex and the City and Dirty Dancing to The Sims, charcuterie boards and the cult of the ‘Chill Bride’, beloved podcast Sentimental Garbage unapologetically celebrates the cultural touchstones that aren’t always considered ‘highbrow’.
Notching up more than 130 episodes since 2018, the podcast has amassed a staunch worldwide following. Host Caroline O’Donoghue arrived in Australia for the first time to record a podcast episode exclusively for Spring Fling.
Live at The Capitol, O’Donoghue and special guest Myf Warhurst defy the cultural cringe as they dig into an array of audience-submitted Australian pop culture moments and icons.Nazanin Boniadi: The 2023 Sydney Peace Prize LectureWheelerCentre2023-11-08 | Acclaimed actor, activist and 2023 Sydney Peace Prize-winner Nazanin Boniadi shares her dream of a 'a free, prosperous and secular democratic Iran'.
Iranian-born actress Nazanin Boniadi has had an impressive onscreen career, including leading roles in the Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power and Homeland.
But it’s her major role as a human rights advocate that has led to her most recent recognition. Over more than two decades, Boniadi has worked tirelessly to elevate the voices and struggles of Iranian citizens and activists, fighting for the country’s democracy and freedom – particularly for women and children. She has advocated at the highest levels, including at the UN Security Council, the US Senate Human Rights Caucus, and in the British Parliament.
Boniadi was selected as the recipient of the 2023 Sydney Peace Prize for ‘lending a powerful voice to support Iranian women and girls and their #WomanLifeFreedom movement, and for using a high-profile platform to promote freedom and justice in Iran’.
At an unmissable event at The Capitol in Melbourne, Boniadi delivered a stirring keynote lecture on democracy and women’s rights, followed by a Q&A hosted by Mahsa Hajjari.
Presented by the Sydney Peace Foundation and RMIT Culture.
Supported by the Wheeler Centre, Amnesty International, Future Women and the Victorian Women’s Trust.A Crack in the Wall: Bassam Aramin and Rami ElhananWheelerCentre2023-10-27 | Both Bassam Aramin and Rami Elhanan have lost children to violence in the conflict between Palestine and Israel. Aramin is a Palestinian academic who spent seven years in an Israeli jail for his role in the Palestinian resistance. Elhanan is an Israeli graphic designer who served in the Israeli Army as a young man.
On the first day of the school year in 1997, Elhanan’s daughter, Smadar, was killed by two Palestinian suicide bombers. In 2007, Aramin’s 10-year-old daughter, Abir, was killed by Israeli border police in front of her school.
United by this shared grief, Aramin and Elhanan’s supported each other in healing from unimaginable loss. Their moving story has been shared around the world, and was the inspiration for Colum McCann’s Booker-Prize-longlisted novel Apeirogon.
Now, for the first time, the pair appear together in Australia for a special World of Words event, hosted by Sally Warhaft. Watch Bassam Aramin and Rami Elhanan as they share their powerful story of loss, personal empathy and peace.
Presented in partnership with Plus61J MediaMaya Hodge in conversation with Zuva GoverwaWheelerCentre2023-10-09 | In partnership with the VCAA, the Wheeler Centre presents a video series supporting the VCE English and EAL Study Design and Unit 3, Outcome 2, Creating texts area of study.
In this series, writers of mentors texts selected for study on List 2 of the 2024 VCE English and EAL Text List talk about their work and their experiences of and reflections on writing.
Maya Hodge is a Lardil and Yangkaal emerging writer and curator based on the lands of the Kulin Nation. Her practice is dedicated to disrupting colonial narratives and centring First Nations storytelling and autonomy. Maya’s writing and poetry have been published by Australian Poetry, Kill Your Darlings, Craft Victoria, Hardie Grant, Cordite Poetry Review, and Overland. In 2021, she was selected as a runner-up for the SBS Emerging Writers’ Competition and this year was shortlisted for the Oodgeroo Noonuccal Indigenous Poetry Prize.
Zuva is a passionate young creative, with a keen interest in music, writing and public speaking. Winner of the 2021 Plain English Speaking Award State Final, she is a strong believer in the power of young people to change the world - and the necessity of foregrounding their voices in conversations about the future. Zuva is currently a student at the University of Melbourne, completing a Bachelor of Arts.
Presented in partnership with the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment AuthorityMaxine Beneba Clarke in conversation with Zuva GoverwaWheelerCentre2023-10-09 | In partnership with the VCAA, the Wheeler Centre presents a video series supporting the VCE English and EAL Study Design and Unit 3, Outcome 2, Creating texts area of study.
In this series, writers of mentors texts selected for study on List 2 of the 2024 VCE English and EAL Text List talk about their work and their experiences of and reflections on writing.
Maxine Beneba Clarke is the author of the acclaimed memoir The Hate Race, the award-winning short fiction collection Foreign Soil, the poetry collections Carrying The World and How Decent Folk Behave, and many other books for adults and children. Her forthcoming poetry collection is It's The Sound of the Thing: 100 new poems for young people. She is currently Poet in Residence at Melbourne University.
Zuva is a passionate young creative, with a keen interest in music, writing and public speaking. Winner of the 2021 Plain English Speaking Award State Final, she is a strong believer in the power of young people to change the world - and the necessity of foregrounding their voices in conversations about the future. Zuva is currently a student at the University of Melbourne, completing a Bachelor of Arts.
Presented in partnership with the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment AuthorityPenni Russon in conversation with Zuva GoverwaWheelerCentre2023-10-09 | In partnership with the VCAA, the Wheeler Centre presents a video series supporting the VCE English and EAL Study Design and Unit 3, Outcome 2, Creating texts area of study.
In this series, writers of mentors texts selected for study on List 2 of the 2024 VCE English and EAL Text List talk about their work and their experiences of and reflections on writing.
Penni Russon is the author of multiple books for young people including the Undine trilogy, Little Bird, Only Ever Always and The Endsister. She is a senior lecturer in literary studies and creative writing at Monash University.
Zuva is a passionate young creative, with a keen interest in music, writing and public speaking. Winner of the 2021 Plain English Speaking Award State Final, she is a strong believer in the power of young people to change the world - and the necessity of foregrounding their voices in conversations about the future. Zuva is currently a student at the University of Melbourne, completing a Bachelor of Arts.
Presented in partnership with the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment AuthorityJeff Goodell: HeatWheelerCentre2023-09-19 | In recent years, Australia has experienced the devastating effects of bushfires, floods and increasingly frequent out-of-season weather patterns. Yet there is still a sense of uncertainty among communities about exactly how the warming planet will continue to impact us. What will life be like when an average summer’s day is 45 degrees? How will we go about our lives?
To help paint a picture of what we can expect in years to come, renowned American author and climate commentator Jeff Goodell travelled to Australia to meet with Sally Warhaft for a clear-eyed, urgent conversation about the climate crisis.
As a journalist, Rolling Stone contributing editor, and New York Times-bestselling author of books including The Water Will Come and Heat: Life and Death on a Scorched Planet, Goodell has covered energy and climate issues for more than a decade.
Hear directly from an award-winning authority on climate change and explore how we can live on a hotter planet, and perhaps attempt to cool it down.Polly Barton: PornWheelerCentre2023-09-15 | In Porn: An Oral History, British writer and literary translator Polly Barton investigates how we talk about porn. Via a series of candid, intimate interviews, Barton surveys habits, attitudes and hang-ups; considers the ethics and aesthetics of porn; and explores shifting notions of fantasies, fetish and desire.
Joining journalist and author Jenny Valentish in conversation at the Wheeler Centre, Barton takes audiences through her year of intimate interviews for a thought-provoking and joyfully frank exploration of porn, sexuality and enduring taboos.
This event discusses mature themes and is recommended for audiences 18+Kicking Goals: Soccer, Equality and the Women’s World CupWheelerCentre2023-09-07 | The 2023 Women’s World Cup was held in Australia, and with more than two billion viewers who tuned into this year’s tournament, it’s a landmark moment in Australian sporting history.
To celebrate, the Wheeler Centre invited players, media and passionate fans to come together for a special event exploring the significance of the Women’s World Cup in Australian sporting history and in the landscape of women’s sport.
Activist and CBC Sports journalist Shireen Ahmed, Football Australia Legacy ‘23 Ambassador Azmeena Hussain, current National League player Emma Checker and inaugural Matildas captain Julie Dolan AM joined host Fiona Crawford to discuss personal and collective triumphs of women’s soccer, explore equality in all facets of the game, and reflect on this historic moment for Australia and for women in sport.